Paul Karasik
Encyclopedia
Paul Karasik is an American cartoonist
, editor, and teacher, notable for his contributions to such works as City of Glass: The Graphic Novel
, The Ride Together: A Memoir of Autism in the Family, and I Shall Destroy All The Civilized Planets.
, Karasik studied briefly at the School of Visual Arts
in New York, where he was a student of Will Eisner
, Harvey Kurtzman
, and Art Spiegelman
.
In 1981, Spiegelman, with his wife, Françoise Mouly
, invited Karasik to become associate editor of their seminal international comics and graphics revue, RAW
. While serving in this position (until 1985), Karasik co-edited Bad News with fellow cartoonist Mark Newgarden
,which ran work by many of the RAW cartoonists, including Kim Deitch
, Ben Katchor
, Richard McGuire, and Jerry Moriarty
.
In 1994
Karasik collaborated with David Mazzucchelli
to adapt Paul Auster’s
novel City of Glass
into a full-length comic
. This adaptation was cited by The Comics Journal
as one of the "100 Best Comics of the 20th Century". Translated into more than a dozen languages, the graphic novel been exhibited in Italy. It was excerpted in The Norton Anthology of Post-Modern American Fiction.
Karasik's book, The Ride Together: A Memoir of Autism in the Family (2004), co-written with his sister, Judy Karasik, employed the format of alternating prose and comics chapters to tell their story of growing up with an older brother with autism
. The Ride Together was named the Best Literary Work of the Year by the Autism Society of America
.
Karasik co-edited of Masters of American Comics (2005), the coffee-table companion catalog to the first major American exhibition of comics, co-sponsored by the Hammer Museum
and the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art
.
His recent anthology highlighting the work of the (previously) obscure Golden Age
cartoonist Fletcher Hanks
, I Shall Destroy All The Civilized Planets (Fantagraphics, 2007), won a 2008 Eisner Award
, the highest honor in the industry. A second volume, You Shall Die By Your Own Evil Creation (Fantagraphics, 2009), when combined with the first, comprises the complete works of Fletcher Hanks, a cartoonist whom cartoonist R. Crumb called "a twisted dude."
Paul Karasik’s gag cartoon
s have appeared in The New Yorker
.
and the School of Visual Arts
in the United States, and at the Scuola Internazionale di Comics in Rome and Florence, Italy. He has given workshops and lectured at The Center for Cartoon Studies
, and given writing seminars at Bennington College
, American University
, and Wheaton College
.
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
, editor, and teacher, notable for his contributions to such works as City of Glass: The Graphic Novel
City of Glass: The Graphic Novel
City of Glass: The Graphic Novel is a one-volume comics adaptation of American author Paul Auster's novella City of Glass. The story was originally part of The New York Trilogy, and in 1994, David Mazzucchelli and Paul Karasik set out to adapt the offbeat, somewhat surreal short novel into a...
, The Ride Together: A Memoir of Autism in the Family, and I Shall Destroy All The Civilized Planets.
Biography
In the early 1980s, after having graduated from the Pratt InstitutePratt Institute
Pratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
, Karasik studied briefly at the School of Visual Arts
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
in New York, where he was a student of Will Eisner
Will Eisner
William Erwin "Will" Eisner was an American comics writer, artist and entrepreneur. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium and is known for the cartooning studio he founded; for his highly influential series The Spirit; for his use of comics as an...
, Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic books and magazines. Kurtzman often signed his name H. Kurtz, followed by a stick figure Harvey Kurtzman (October 3, 1924, Brooklyn, New York – February 21, 1993) was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic...
, and Art Spiegelman
Art Spiegelman
Art Spiegelman is an American comics artist, editor, and advocate for the medium of comics, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning comic book memoir, Maus. His works are published with his name in lowercase: art spiegelman.-Biography:Spiegelman was born in Stockholm, Sweden, to Polish Jews...
.
In 1981, Spiegelman, with his wife, Françoise Mouly
Françoise Mouly
Françoise Mouly is a Paris-born French artist and designer best known for her work with RAW, a showcase publication for cutting edge comic art, and as art editor of The New Yorker, a position she has held since 1993...
, invited Karasik to become associate editor of their seminal international comics and graphics revue, RAW
RAW (magazine)
RAW was a comics anthology edited by Art Spiegelman and Françoise Mouly and published by Mouly from 1980 to 1991. It was a flagship publication of the 1980s alternative comics movement, serving as a more intellectual counterpoint to Robert Crumb's visceral Weirdo, which followed squarely in the...
. While serving in this position (until 1985), Karasik co-edited Bad News with fellow cartoonist Mark Newgarden
Mark Newgarden
Mark Newgarden is an American underground cartoonist. His work has appeared widely, and his influential shape-shifting weekly feature Newgarden, which appeared in alternative weekly newspapers like New York Press, created a cult following for the artist.Newgarden's work has appeared in a diverse...
,which ran work by many of the RAW cartoonists, including Kim Deitch
Kim Deitch
-Sources:* at Lambiek's Comiclopedia-External links:* Ford, Jeffrey. *Heller, Steven. **...
, Ben Katchor
Ben Katchor
Ben Katchor is an American cartoonist best known for his comic strip Julius Knipl, Real Estate Photographer. He has contributed comics and drawings to The New Yorker and The New York Times...
, Richard McGuire, and Jerry Moriarty
Jerry Moriarty
Jerry Moriarty is an American artist and teacher at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. Moriarty entered the Pratt Institute in 1956 and earned a BFA in 1960. After graduating he worked as a freelance magazine illustrator to support his Abstract Expressionist painting...
.
In 1994
1994 in comics
-Year overall:* Huge changes in the marketplace force many retailers and small publishers out of business...
Karasik collaborated with David Mazzucchelli
David Mazzucchelli
David Mazzucchelli is an American comic book artist and writer. His latest work is the award-winning graphic novel, Asterios Polyp.-Career:...
to adapt Paul Auster’s
Paul Auster
Paul Benjamin Auster is an American author known for works blending absurdism, existentialism, crime fiction and the search for identity and personal meaning in works such as The New York Trilogy , Moon Palace , The Music of Chance , The Book of Illusions and The Brooklyn Follies...
novel City of Glass
City of Glass
City of Glass may refer to:* Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada* City of Glass , a 1985 novel by Paul Auster** City of Glass: The Graphic Novel, a 1994 graphic novel adaptation by Paul Karasik and David Mazzucchelli...
into a full-length comic
City of Glass: The Graphic Novel
City of Glass: The Graphic Novel is a one-volume comics adaptation of American author Paul Auster's novella City of Glass. The story was originally part of The New York Trilogy, and in 1994, David Mazzucchelli and Paul Karasik set out to adapt the offbeat, somewhat surreal short novel into a...
. This adaptation was cited by The Comics Journal
The Comics Journal
The Comics Journal, often abbreviated TCJ, is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels...
as one of the "100 Best Comics of the 20th Century". Translated into more than a dozen languages, the graphic novel been exhibited in Italy. It was excerpted in The Norton Anthology of Post-Modern American Fiction.
Karasik's book, The Ride Together: A Memoir of Autism in the Family (2004), co-written with his sister, Judy Karasik, employed the format of alternating prose and comics chapters to tell their story of growing up with an older brother with autism
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
. The Ride Together was named the Best Literary Work of the Year by the Autism Society of America
Autism Society of America
The Autism Society of America was founded in 1965 by Bernard Rimland, PhD, together with Ruth C. Sullivan and a small group of other parents of autistic children. Its original name was the National Society for Autistic Children; the name was changed to emphasize that children with autism grow up...
.
Karasik co-edited of Masters of American Comics (2005), the coffee-table companion catalog to the first major American exhibition of comics, co-sponsored by the Hammer Museum
Hammer Museum
The Armand Hammer Museum of Art and Culture Center, or the Hammer Museum as it is more commonly known, is an art museum in the Westwood district of Los Angeles, California...
and the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art
Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art
The Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art was founded from the former Art Gallery of North York in 1999, and exists as a not-for-profit, arms-length agency of the City of Toronto...
.
His recent anthology highlighting the work of the (previously) obscure Golden Age
Golden Age of Comic Books
The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s...
cartoonist Fletcher Hanks
Fletcher Hanks
Fletcher Hanks, Sr. was a cartoonist from the Golden Age of Comic Books, who wrote and drew stories detailing the adventures of all-powerful, supernatural heroes and their elaborate punishments of transgressors...
, I Shall Destroy All The Civilized Planets (Fantagraphics, 2007), won a 2008 Eisner Award
Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
, the highest honor in the industry. A second volume, You Shall Die By Your Own Evil Creation (Fantagraphics, 2009), when combined with the first, comprises the complete works of Fletcher Hanks, a cartoonist whom cartoonist R. Crumb called "a twisted dude."
Paul Karasik’s gag cartoon
Gag cartoon
A gag cartoon is most often a single-panel cartoon, usually including a hand-lettered or typeset caption beneath the drawing. A pantomime cartoon carries no caption...
s have appeared in The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
.
Teaching
Also a teacher, Karasik has taught at the Rhode Island School of DesignRhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design is a fine arts and design college located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1877. Located at the base of College Hill, the RISD campus is contiguous with the Brown University campus. The two institutions share social, academic, and community resources and...
and the School of Visual Arts
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
in the United States, and at the Scuola Internazionale di Comics in Rome and Florence, Italy. He has given workshops and lectured at The Center for Cartoon Studies
Center for Cartoon Studies
The Center for Cartoon Studies is a two year institution focusing on sequential art, specifically Comics and Graphic Novels, Located in the village of White River Junction, in the town of Hartford, Vermont, the Center offers a Master of Fine Arts degree, both one and two-year certificate...
, and given writing seminars at Bennington College
Bennington College
Bennington College is a liberal arts college located in Bennington, Vermont, USA. The college was founded in 1932 as a women's college and became co-educational in 1969.-History:-Early years:...
, American University
American University
American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
, and Wheaton College
Wheaton College
Wheaton College may refer to:* Wheaton College , private Christian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois* Wheaton College , private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Norton, Massachusetts...
.